Chapter 189: Mink Tribe

"This elephant is gigantic, it's mind-boggling!" Nami and the others stared in awe at the colossal creature. Indeed, for ordinary people, figuring out how to climb Zunesha would be a near-impossible feat. Even some pirates with bounties exceeding 100 million would struggle. Its sheer size makes scaling it a monumental task. And accidentally getting stepped on by Zunesha could be fatal. The force behind one of its kicks could easily rival an attack from a Four Emperor.

"There's actually a device on Zou that can hoist ships up," Kozuki Hiyori explained, drawing on what she had learned. "But you need to make contact with someone up there first."

"No need for such complications," Luo Ning declared, activating his ability. In an instant, all the ships began levitating. Escort ships weren't even necessary. While there were plenty of reckless rookies in the New World, few dared to attack Impel Down personnel. After all, with Luo Ning on board, any attackers wouldn't stand a chance. It was that simple. So while escort ships weren't essential, they served as a symbol of prestige, and thus remained. Now, however, all the ships, including the escorts, were flying through the air, steadily ascending towards the top of Zou.

The ships soon reached the back of Zunesha, and Luo Ning landed them securely on solid ground. He also took precautions to prevent the ships from being washed away during Zunesha's occasional baths. The immense volume of water from these baths could easily send the ships plummeting down from this enormous height. A fall from such a distance would spell doom for anyone onboard, except perhaps monstrously strong individuals like Kaido.

Upon disembarking on Zou, they were quickly spotted by the locals, particularly the Mink Tribe members, who were drawn by Kozuki Hiyori's presence. This time, there was no civil war between Nekomamushi and Inuarashi. They didn't even care about their titles of Night King and Day King; their sole focus was on the newcomers.

Luo Ning couldn't help but express his frustration at this. Even in the face of potential genocide, they hadn't resolved their internal conflict. Now, with visitors from Wano Country, their squabble seemed forgotten.

News on Zou traveled slowly. Even News Birds couldn't reach its peak. Zunesha's constant movement made it difficult for them to establish a fixed route, and finding the elephant was like searching for a needle in a haystack. As a result, news on Zou was quite isolated, and the Minks were unaware of Wano Country's liberation.

After Kozuki Hiyori filled them in on recent events, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi rushed to Luo Ning, knelt before him, and expressed their deepest gratitude.

"Thank you immensely for saving Wano Country! It's a relief that things are back in order there!"

Inuarashi and Nekomamushi felt helpless. After the events of that year, revenge wasn't even a consideration. How could they possibly fight Kaido? Even in their forms, they wouldn't stand a chance against a Yonko like him.

They were left with no choice but to wait for Momonosuke's return. However, Momonosuke hadn't arrived, and instead, Kozuki Hiyori came with news of Wano's liberation. She was now a general in Wano, actively involved in the country's reconstruction.

All this felt surreal, leaving them speechless. But their gratitude towards Luo Ning was undeniable. After all, his actions had altered everything. Most importantly, Luo Ning didn't seize control of Wano Country; he entrusted it to Kozuki Hiyori. While some might see a potential future marriage between them, a marriage would necessitate a change in leadership.

From their perspective, Luo Ning's selflessness deserved immense appreciation. It was no wonder they felt so grateful.

"Would you two please stop kneeling and kowtowing all the time? It makes me uncomfortable"

Luo Ning sighed, looking down at the kneeling figures of Nekomamushi and Inuarashi. Even in their kneeling positions, they were taller than him. The height discrepancies in the pirate world were truly bizarre. Thankfully, most of the women he found attractive weren't giants. Even Shirahoshi had been shrunk by his ability, so there was nothing to worry about in that regard.

"We apologize, but this is a gesture of atonement. When Lord Oden sacrificed himself to save us, he essentially claimed our lives as his own. Our sole purpose ever since has been to overthrow Kaido," Nekomamushi explained.

"Unfortunately, we lacked the strength to do so. We could only wait for the fulfillment of a prophecy. It seems the prophecy wasn't entirely accurate, but these are the kinds of mistakes we all welcome!"

"...In any case, by helping Wano Country, you've indirectly helped us!" Inuarashi concluded. They were united in their determination to express their gratitude to Luo Ning.

"Forget it, just figure things out yourselves," Luo Ning dismissed them. He wasn't interested in their customs. After all, he wasn't the one being inconvenienced.

After Nekomamushi and Inuarashi expressed their gratitude, they prepared a lavish feast. During the preparations, a massive torrent of water cascaded down from above. Fortunately, Luo Ning reacted quickly, using his Reiatsu to block the water. Otherwise, everyone would have been soaked.

They weren't inside a building at the moment, and being caught outside in such a downpour would have been unpleasant.

"Where did all that water come from?" Nami and the others asked, bewildered. "Is the weather here this unpredictable? We're on the back of an elephant, right? Why is this happening?" As a navigator, Nami felt completely out of her depth. She thought she had a decent understanding of New World weather patterns, but it seemed she was still naive.

"It's the giant elephant is pouring water on itself, just like an elephant taking a shower" Luo Ning explained. Nami and the others were speechless. They had assumed it was some strange weather phenomenon, not something so literal.

This elephant truly was gigantic, terrifyingly so.

"No wonder the ships needed to be secured earlier," Robin chimed in. "With that amount of water, they would have been washed away instantly. That was very insightful of you, Luo Ning."

While Robin appreciated Luo Ning's foresight, her primary interest lay in Zou's historical texts.